Italy’s Ars Classica Announces 2024 Winners

Violinist Anna Im has won the €30,000 first prize in the competition's senior category

Founded in 2023, the ArsClassica International Competition is open to emerging musicians aged between 18 and 35 from all over the world. The competition for piano, violin, viola, and cello, offers early career support, plus professional collaboration, development, and partnerships.

This year, the competition also opened its junior division competition for the same instrument groups for international musicians aged between 10 and 17.

In the senior category, South Korean violinist Anna Im won the first prize valued at €30,000. The prize includes performing in professional audio and video recordings in historical locations across Rome, which will be streamed on ArsClassica and VideoClassica channels.

Joint second place went to the South Korean pianist Ye Eun Hyun and American pianist Anastasiya Magamedova. Third prize was awarded to cellist Seungyeon Baik from South Korea. All top-three place winners will receive the opportunity to perform in a Gala Concert in Rome.

Special mentions were made to South Korean violinist Jaewon Wee and Russian violinist Galiya Zharova. For more on each of the senior category winners, click here. 

In the junior category, the foremost Prodigy Prize went to the 16-year-old Australian pianist Jasmine Lai. She will receive high-quality audio and video recordings of a solo piece valued at €10,000, and will perform in at least one concert in Rome.

The first-prize winners with scholarships of €500 are American cellist Aurelia Faidley, pianist Chanya Bayla Somboonvechakarn from Thailand, and Chinese cellist Ziyang Zhao. 

Second prize with €300 scholarships went to Swiss cellist Lyam Chenaux, Japanese pianist Mahoko Endo, and Chinese violinist Yushan Huang. 

Winners of the third prize with €200 scholarships include American violinist Rebecca Beato, Tawianese pianist Yun-Hsuan Chiang, Australian violinist Hannah Kim, and American pianist Isabella Liu. For more on each of the junior winners, click here. 

The juries in both categories involved ArsClassica’s founders, distinguished members of the association, and renowned musicians. Paolo Giacomini served as chair, while Malgorzata Maria Petryla was appointed deputy chair of the jury.